


The Red Spoon

by CasualOtaku



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Red Hood/Arsenal (Comics), Red Robin (Comics), Under the Red Hood
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Chef/Baker AU, Flirting, Food, Friendship, JayTim Week, JayTimWeek 2020, M/M, Meet-Cute, Size Difference
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-02
Updated: 2020-06-02
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:35:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,480
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24509275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CasualOtaku/pseuds/CasualOtaku
Summary: Written for JayTimWeek 2020 Summer Edition!Day 1: College AU OR Chef/Baker AU
Relationships: Tim Drake/Jason Todd
Comments: 28
Kudos: 112





	1. TVP Is Not A Food Group

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet-cute time!

Tim stared at the contents of his mini-fridge as if doing so would magically make something other than cold brew coffee, milk, and soda appear within. He was so sure he’d had some leftover Chinese, but the suspiciously blank spot on one shelf made it clear he was mistaken. Sadly it was a little too late at night to get anything but pizza or diner food and he simply wasn’t in the mood for either. That meant he’d have to head to the grocery store to get himself a frozen dinner or the like in order to quiet his stomach enough for sleep.   
  
He grumbled a little and debated the merits of actually throwing on some decent clothes before he decided to follow in the proud tradition of his fellow caffeine-addled college sophomores and simply threw on a hoodie over his pajamas. That done, he stepped barefoot into his sneakers, grabbed his keys and wallet, then headed out the door messy hair and all..  
  
The trip itself was fairly quiet once he exited campustown and made his way to the 24-hour grocery store down the street. Once inside he grabbed himself a cart and headed to the frozen food aisle to pore over his choices. He was staring at the nutrition label on a tray of pseudo-Chinese food when a voice piped up behind him.  
  
“I wouldn’t do it if I were you.”  
  
Tim blinked and turned to look up, and up, and _/G_ _ood god! How tall is this guy?/_ up at the man who has spoken to him.  
  
The man grinned and pointed at the tray in Tim’s hand. “That stuff is no good for you. It’s mainly salt and corn syrup with a hint of chicken and a shit ton of TVP. You’d be better off slapping sriracha and soy sauce on a piece of cardboard.”  
  
Tim had largely come to that conclusion himself, but that didn’t mean he appreciated having it pointed out. He glanced at the man’s own basket which was filled with an assortment of fresh vegetables, couscous, strawberries, and some chicken thighs. That eliminated calling him out on hypocrisy so Tim went with honesty instead. “Well not all of us have access to an actual kitchen you know.”  
  
“Would you even know what to do in it if you did?” the man asked with a rakish grin.  
  
Tim blushed beautifully before he forced the reaction down and brought out his inner Drake. Mother would never approve of him losing his cool so easily. “I don’t see how that’s any of your business.”  
  
The man laughed a little. “I suppose it isn’t. Just consider it a personal peeve rearing its ugly head. I’ll leave you to your frozen kung pao. Have a good night.”  
  
Tim pursed his lips as the man gave him a jaunty salute and headed off. It was too bad the guy was a jerk, because objectively speaking he was pretty damned hot. Tall, handsome in a roguish sort of way, with perfectly sculpted thighs peeking through his threadbare jeans. Even the mallen streak in his jet black hair just added to the bad boy sex appeal. 

Tim huffed at the silly sense of attraction and put the dinner back. Maybe he could find something a little better for him in the deli. At the very least they tended to have salads so he could get some greens in him. It wasn’t like the sight of the perfectly green baby spinach in the other man’s basket had influenced him or anything. Certainly not. It was just logical for him to get something fresh after he’d made the effort to drive here. That was all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this entire thing in one mad dash to the finish and was damn near nose-diving into the keyboard by the end so I could get it up this week. So please forgive any grammar or editing errors. Enjoy!


	2. Want To Trade Lunches?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A wild Jason appears!

A week later Tim had mostly forgotten about his run in with Mr. Tall, Dark, and Judgmental. Instead he was debating hitting up the sandwich shop (since it was closer to his current location) or making his way across campus to the cafeteria (since he still had some food credits left for the week). He was swiping through the campus app to see what was on the menu for that day when he accidentally bumped into someone pinning a poster to the bulletin board.  
  
“Well, if it isn’t Mr. Frozen Kung Pao Chicken. How’s it going?’  
  
Tim blinked and looked up, and up, and _/_ _Seriously this guy is way too tall!/_ up at the man before blurting out the first thing to come to mind. “What’re you doing here?”  
  
“Drumming up business.” the man said as he cocked his head towards the poster he’d just put up.

“Tired of cafeteria food, sandwiches, and vending machines?” Tim read aloud. “Hire a professional chef! Our deluxe starter package includes five meals a week at just $10.00 per serving. Healthy, delicious, and cheaper than yet another pizza. We deliver everything straight to your door, ready to heat, eat, and enjoy. Call The Red Spoon today!”  
  
Tim turned back to the man with an incredulous expression. “You’re a chef?”  
  
“Yep!” the man replied. “Just finished my degree in culinary arts.earlier this year.”  
  
Tim blinked again. He wasn’t used to thinking of chefs as built brick outhouses.  
  
“Jason Todd.” the man said as he held out his hand  
  
Tim stared at it a moment before he took it and gave it a firm shake. “Tim Drake.”  
  
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Drake.” Jason said with a smile. “So what do you say? Want to give me a try?”  
  
Tim eyed the advert again. The meals were all beautifully plated, but the layout and photo quality were atrocious. “You’d do a better job of convincing me if it didn’t look like you took your photos on a potato.”  
  
Jason blinked himself then laughed. “Okay, so they're a little grainy but I’m just starting out and ingredients were more important than photos. I worked with what I had.”  
  
Tim hummed in thought. He had no clue how to cook, but that didn’t mean he didn’t recognize quality ingredients when he saw them. He knew from his peek into Jason’s cart last week that the other man did as well. And he liked the idea of some decent food that didn't involve drive-thrus, walk-up counters, or delivery. Still, the business man in him wouldn’t allow him to just skip the haggling so he turned back to Jason and smiled. “How about we trade?”  
  
“What?” Jason asked.  
  
“Two weeks of meals.” Tim said. “Make me two weeks of meals and I’ll get you some awesome photos to make your ads pop.”  
  
Jason crossed his arms. “How do I know you’re actually any good?”  
  
Tim opened up his Insta and showed Jason.several of the photos he’d taken with friends that were into food trends.. “This is just my cell phone quality work. I also have professional grade equipment that would make them even better.”  
  
Jason hummed in thought, then made his own offer. “One week of meals with the option for a second if I see an uptick in business from your ads.”  
  
“One week with desserts.” Tim shot back.  
  
Jason smiled and made another counter offer. “One week of meals, no desserts, but I’ll bring you to my kitchen and personally prepare you a full course meal after delivery of the photos. I’m talking soup, salad, appetizer, main course, AND dessert.”  
  
“Sold!” Tim replied with a smile of his own.. “When do we start?”  
  
Jason whipped out a business card. “Head to my site and select your meals. If you get it to me by Thursday I can squeeze you in with next week’s deliveries.”  
  
Tim looked down at the card and grinned. It was well designed, if a bit simple, and had all Jason’s contact details. “Will do. Now I need to hurry and grab something to eat before class. And unless you’re hiding food in your pockets I don’t have much more time to spare.”  
  
“Sadly, I’m not...so you may as well take in one last cafeteria meal so you can truly appreciate my food when it arrives and knocks your socks off.”  
  
“I look forward to it.” Tim said with a grin before he waved farewell and continued on his way.


	3. Room Service

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim gets his first taste of Jason's cooking.

Just under a week later there was a knock at Tim’s door followed by a loud cry of “Delivery!”  
  
Tim jumped to his feet and zipped over to open the door, only to be slightly disappointed that it wasn’t Jason. Instead he found a tall red-headed man with pale white skin and a full sleeve of tats standing outside his door holding a large cardboard box firmly against one hip.  
  
“Timothy Drake?” the redhead asked.  
  
“Yes?” Tim replied.  
  
The redhead held out a small clipboard with a receipt attached. “I got your delivery from The Red Spoon. Sign please.”  
  
Tim took the clipboard and scribbled his name before handing it back. “Thanks.”  
  
“No prob.” the man said as he shoved the clipboard into his back pocket and then passed over the box. “Enjoy your food.”  
  
“I’m sure I will. Errr...do I tip you or something?”  
  
“Nah, you got your hands full.” the man replied. “You can hit me up next time. Trust me, you’ll want more once you taste it.”  
  
With that the man departed leaving Tim to shuffle his way back into his room so he could drop the box on his bed before grabbing a pair of scissors. He carefully cut open the box and pulled up the flaps to reveal a welcome letter sitting on top of four bundles of wooden flatware wrapped in colorful tissue paper.. Correction... **bamboo** flatware Tim realized as he read through the letter. 

_[Thank you for choosing the Red Spoon!_ _  
__  
__Not only have you chosen a better, tastier, and healthier meal. But you’re also helping the environment! That’s right. All our flatware is made of earth-friendly bamboo. That colorful tissue came from sugarcane. And our sturdy reheatable containers are created from corn making everything in this box (including the box itself) biodegradable and safe to put into a compost pile along with any scraps. Although we doubt there will be any scraps left. Our food is just that good._ _😉]_

 _/Cute./_ Tim thought to himself before he continued reading. _/Totally cocky, but cute./_

It went on to say that he could either keep the ice packs (good for icing sore limbs) or return them to get two free snacks with his next order and gave him a referral code that could earn him free food as well.  
  
Tim smiled at that and peeled back the layer of insulation material to pluck out his first meal. It was the Mean Green Lasagna. Of course it had to be the one he’d been most nervous about trying. He’d selected it figuring it would be his one throwaway, a challenge to see just how good Jason was.

Tim shrugged. Well, he’d ordered it so he may as well try it. He peered at the little label that told him what was in it and how to heat it before he poked a couple holes in the film and set it in his microwave to spin while he put the other meals away. Then he plucked up the ice packs to shove them into his freezer only to reveal a single bar of chocolate that had a note wrapped around it 

_[I love a good snack. Looking forward to the pictures. - Jason]._ _  
_  
Tim blushed a little at that, then told himself he was reading too much into it. Obviously the chocolate bar was the snack in question, not him. He tore into only to realize it wasn’t just a new label on a brand-name bar. It was a custom mold with the company logo on it and it smelled of dark chocolate and espresso. He wasn’t sure how Jason knew he loved coffee but he couldn’t help but take a bite. It had the sharp snap of a good dark chocolate, but quickly began to melt smoothly on his tongue, recreating all the good things about a mocha without being too sweet.

Tim instantly began wolfing down more, but forced himself to stop at half the bar so he would have some to savor later. Plus, he needed to leave room for his dinner. Speaking of which...he quickly grabbed the best of his two plates and began setting up his camera for a shoot. Once the meal was done he set about transferring it to the plate, all while trying to ignore the wonderful aromas that had his stomach growling. 

It took a while to stage the area, adding a glass of water in the background and shifting items about to make the area look more like a dining room table than a desk. And by then it was no longer steaming hot, but he was able to get a few really wonderful shots before he picked up the plate and plopped down to actually taste it.  
  
He damn near melted on the spot.  
  
How? How had Jason managed to make a vegetarian lasagna that was so flavorful Tim really didn’t miss the meat? The marinara tasted bright and complex with just a hint of heat. The zucchini ‘noodles’ were tender and not at all slimy. And while the cheese on top wasn’t as melty as it would have been piping hot, the ricotta within was still creamy and had the perfect balance of salt and pepper.  
  
Tim purred in contentment as he continued his meal, wishing he had some crusty bread to sop up the last dregs of sauce from the container. If this was just his introduction to Jason’s food he had come out like a bandit. Tim finished every bite and realized that the portion size had been perfect as well. He was full, but not stuffed...yet part of him wished he had just a couple more bites to enjoy for the flavor alone. 

He shook his head. Maybe it was a good thing the meals were portion controlled. If he’d had unlimited access to that dish he might have eaten himself into a coma. For now though, the food was done so he headed over to his shared bathroom to wash out the tray so it wouldn’t stink up the trash. He opened the door only to see one of his neighbors, Connor Kent, as he entered from the other side with his shower caddy.  
  
“Oh, hey Tim. Didn’t realize you needed to use the place. I can wait a bit.”   
  
“Nah, don’t mind me.” Tim said as he moved to the sink. “I just need to rinse this out. How was practice?”  
  
“Tiring. Coach Wilson is a hard ass, but he wins games so what can you do?” Connor replied as he headed for the shower. “So how was the meal service?”  
  
“Pretty amazing actually. If the other four meals are as good as the first I’ll definitely become a customer.” Tim said as he cut on the tap.  
  
“Sweet! I wish I could afford to give them a try myself, but I’m stuck with cafeteria food and the once weekly splurge on Sundays.” Connor said.   
  
“Hey, at least that cafeteria food is included in your scholarship.” Tim said,. “All you gotta do is keep playing well and make sure you pass your classes.”  
  
“Yeah...no pressure.” Connor said with rueful laugh before he pulled the curtain closed and tossed his towel over the rod.  
  
“Hey, just because football isn’t my thing it doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate how hard you push yourself physically and mentally to keep up with everything. Especially since you've gone from Smallville, Kansas to big city Gotham on top of it all.”  
  
“Thanks, Tim.” Connor said before he started up the shower. “I’m glad you recognize that. A lot of people look at me and just see some dumb jock that got scouted to be an OT.”  
  
“Hey, no worries. I know you got a brain in there. And speaking of brains, thanks so much for those Biology notes. They helped a lot.” Tim said.  
  
“Anytime.” Connor said before he got to work getting clean. “See ya later.”  
  
Tim ducked out and closed the door behind him with a sigh. Connor was another guy that was amazingly hot, but he was also dating one of the cheerleaders AND identified as distressingly straight. 

Still they had become good friends over the past semester. Good enough that Tim hoped they’d be neighbors again next year. 

In fact both his neighbors were infinitely better than his roommate during freshman year. That guy had been a real jerk named Mikron O'Jeneus. The teen was objectively a mechanical engineering genius, but he also blew out a window and part of a wall in the science department while trying to perfect a new fuel accelerant and promptly got himself expelled.  
  
Tim got to spend the rest of his freshman year treating the room they had shared as a single and made certain to upgrade to an actual single the next year, extra costs be damned. He just sold his BMW and got a used Honda Accord instead to get the extra money without bugging his parents. THAT would have caused far too many headaches when they’d given him a trust fund specifically tailored to get him through school in what they felt would be a sufficient fashion to cover all the basics with just enough for some extra-curricular activities to help him build a networking list for the future. 

  
Tim slid the cleaned and empty container into the trash and folded down the box everything had come in before he put away all his camera equipment and got to work editing the photos. He carefully adjusted the levels and added a color layer to help cancel out the slight green of the fluorescents in his room. Sunlight would have been better of course, but the sun had already moved behind the building when the box arrived so it was editing to the rescue. Tim spent a good amount of time making sure everything was perfect before he saved the image in a couple different sizes and emailed Jason the results.  
  
[ _Here you go. The first of the five meals. Hope you like it! - Tim_ ]  
  
Job done Tim made sure to save his work one more time before he swapped over to his online math class and got to work on some practice problems. An hour or so passed before he got a notification that Jason had written back. Tim eagerly finished up his work and swapped over to a new window to check the message feeling giddy with excitement.  
  
[ _Wow. You really do know your stuff. No wonder you said it looked like I used a potato. Speaking of...how do you feel about roasted fingerlings for that dinner date of ours?_ _  
__  
__I saw some amazing specimens at the farmer’s market the other day and I wouldn’t mind setting aside the cream of the crop for you._ 😉 ]  
  
Tim read the message, then reread the message. Maybe he hadn’t been so far off the mark after all, but then again there was a winking emoji in there which could have meant Jason was just teasing. Tim touched a finger to his lip and ruminated over it a bit before sending back his reply. 

[ _Sounds great! The lasagna was amazing so I’m sure I’ll enjoy whatever you offer me. I’ll send more pictures as I eat my way through the others._ ]   
  
Jason replied back almost immediately. 

  
[ _Looking forward to it. See you soon, Timmy._ ]


	4. But What Am I Gonna Wear?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim is a dork with very good friends

By the end of the week Tim was almost forlorn that he’d have to go the weekend without Jason’s food, but he’d already signed up for a subscription so he knew he’d have more by Monday. He’d just have to find something else to eat over the weekend. 

He was looking over the menu for his favorite Thai place when he suddenly got a new message from Jason.   
  
Worried that something might have been wrong with the final set of photos from last night he quickly opened the message only to be floored by what it said.   
  
_ [Hey, I know it’s last minute but how would you feel about having that dinner tonight instead of next week? I lucked out on my trip to the butcher and got my hands on some genuine wagyu beef. I think you’ve more than earned the right to share some with me. Pick you up at six? _ ]   
  
Tim couldn’t reply fast enough. [ _ Oh god YES you wonderful man you. I was contemplating takeout when I got this. I’ll meet you in front of my dorm. _ ]   
  
Jason’s reply was immediate. [ _ Awesome. See you then. Bring your appetite and wear stretchy pants. I’m gonna give you ALL the foodgasms _ .]   
  
Tim blushed at the reply and tried to decide if he should write back or not. Maybe that would be too forward? He didn’t want to seem TOO eager (even if he totally was). In the end he forced himself to walk away and focus on getting ready, only to realize he had no ‘stretchy’ pants outside of sweats, pajamas, and gym shorts. Tim wasn’t willing to wear any of those on a ‘date’ with Jason so he tore through his closet, trying to decide on SOMETHING before realizing he had NOTHING that fit the bill. Panic was close to setting in before he decided this called for desperate measures. 

Tim headed through the bathroom to knock on the door connecting him to his neighbors.   
  
Connor answered the door with a set of headphones perched on his head. The sounds of a co-op game blared out of one side as he uncovered his ear so he could hear. “Oh hey, Tim. What’s up?”   
  
“I have a fashion emergency and I need your roommate’s help.” Tim said before speaking a bit louder. “Wally! I need to borrow some pants!”   
  
Wally pulled back his own headphones. “What?”   
  
“Pants!” Tim repeated. “I just want some pants. A decent pair of dressy, stretch pants. You all but live in stretch pants so I’m hoping you have a pair that I can borrow. Please?”   
  
“Sure, dude.” Wally said as he peeled off his headphones and headed for his closet. “But why stretchy pants? You thinking you’re going to need to quickly strip?”   
  
“He does have the ‘I got a date!’ face going.” Connor mused, causing Tim to blush profusely.   
  
“Ooh! Who’s the lucky guy?” Wally asked as he pulled out a pair of black slacks with an elasticized waist and tossed them over.   
  
“It’s not a date. Well not a ‘date’ date. We’re just going to eat.” Tim insisted as he caught the pants.   
  
“It’s the ‘hawt chef’ isn’t it?” Connor teased. “You’ve been going on and on about his food so much I’ve been thinking of trying to find myself a gig just to afford a sample box.”   
  
“Yes, but it’s not a date!” Tim said. “He just happened to get some really good wagyu and wanted to share it.”   
  
“I dunno man.” Wally said. “Sounds like a date to me.”   
  
Tim blinked, then panicked a bit. “Oh god. It is, isn’t it? I haven’t got anything decent in my wardrobe. I’m going to look so trashy.”   
  
“Dude. You’ve literally got a hand-tailored suit sitting in your closet that costs more than my entire wardrobe. I know you have a sense of style.” Wally replied.   
  
“That’s society style. Not meet a hot guy who says he wants to give me foodgasms style” Tim said.   
  
“And that explains the stretchy pants.” Connor said with a grin.   
  
Wally shook his head and slapped his hands onto Tim’s shoulders to turn him around and march him back towards his own room. “Look. I’ll help you out. You get in a shower, wash your hair, brush your teeth, et cetera, and I’ll pick you out an outfit WITH stretchy pants so you can go enjoy your flirting and foodgasms. Okay?’   
  
“..okay.” Tim squeaked. “Thanks.”   
  
“Hey, what are friends for? Now wash!”   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bonus internet points to whoever gets the 'decent pair of pants' reference.


	5. Your Vroom Vroom Makes My Heart Go Boom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason picks Tim up for their date.

Later that night Tim found himself standing outside his dorm wearing the borrowed stretchy slacks and a silk button down shirt in a deep shade of crimson. Wally had helped him wrangle his hair into a style that threaded that fine line between sexy and messy and given him a light spritz of a cologne he’d honestly forgotten he even owned. He fiddled nervously with his phone as he waited for Jason to arrive, constantly checking the time.    
  
At precisely eight’o’clock a sleek black and blue Bugati pulled up, causing Tim’s jaw to drop. His beamer had been considered high-end by most of his old dorm,, this was another level entirely. Jason leaned across the passenger seat and opened the door before giving Tim a grin. “Hey there. Hop on in. I got all the prep done so we’ll be ready to start as soon as we get there.”   
  
“Jason. This is a Bugati.” Tim said as he slid into the passenger seat and pulled on his seat belt.   
  
“Yeah?’ Jason replied.   
  
“I thought you were a first year chef? How can you afford a multi-million dollar car?”   
  
“I can’t.” Jason said. “It’s technically my old man’s car. Mine is in the shop so I asked to borrow one of his and this is the one he sent me. I can tell by the color he really meant it for my older brother, but Dick’s off in Bludhaven trying to live outside the family shadow for a bit so he can’t exactly accept it right now.”   
  
Tim blinked several times as a few things he’d overlooked before began to click. He didn’t really care that much about high society, so it made sense that it hadn’t hit him right away, but even he recalled the ‘scandal’ when Bruce Wayne had adopted a ‘street rat’ out of nowhere and completely upended Gotham’s polite society.   
  
“You’re THAT Jason Todd? Jason Todd-Wayne?” Tim asked.   
  
“Yep.” Jason said. “I’m not much for the family shadow either so I thought I’d try to make it with something I actually enjoy.”   
  
“Cooking?” Tim asked.   
  
“Yep.” Jason replied. “I technically don’t  _ ‘have’  _ to work since Bruce is pretty generous with the trust funds, but none of us Waynes do well idle.”   
  
“I-I see.” Tim replied.   
  
“You’re kind of in the same boat. Aren’t you Mr. Drake? Your family isn’t exactly slogging through the Bowery either.”   
  
Tim blushed and looked down at his hands. “Errr, no...but I don’t have the luxury of breaking away to ‘find myself’. I’m the only heir so I’m being groomed to take over the family business.”   
  
“Is that what you want to do?” Jason asked    
  
“I-I don’t really know. It’s been expected of me so long it kind of became my world.” Tim murmured.   
  
“What about your photography? I can tell you love it. The care comes through in your composition.”   
  
“I do love it.” Tim said. “But I don’t think I could make a living with it. At least not the sort of living I want for myself. And I’m just selfish enough to want to maintain my lifestyle as long as I don’t hurt others to do it.”   
  
“That’s not selfish. That’s human.” Jason said. “You’re living well below your means.”   
  
“I know I’m lucky to have what I have.” Tim said. “There’s no need to act in a way that screams ‘I have money!’ just to impress the people around me. I’m really not that different than any other student.”   
  
“Actually, that alone says you  _ are _ different than a lot of our peers.” Jason said. “Then again, the simple fact you showed up to a Stop and Shop in the middle of the night in worn out Spider-Man pajamas and a hoodie to buy some frozen Chinese food told me that.”   
  
“Wait. Does that mean you knew who I was before you spoke to me?” Tim asked.   
  
“I had a suspicion, but considering we haven’t spoken since you were ten years old it made it a bit hard to be sure. I figured I had to be mistaken when I got a look at your face because I honestly expected you to age some since then.” _   
  
_

Tim blinked as he realized what that implied and reached out to punch Jason in the shoulder. “Asshole.”   
  
Jason just laughed at the punch. “Baby Bird has claws. I like it.”   
  
Tim huffed, but found himself charmed in spite of himself. “Isn’t it usually ‘kitten’ has claws?”   
  
“Yeah, but we started off this little trade because you were hungry. And I couldn’t help but picture a baby bird with its mouth open, begging for food. So Baby Bird it is.”   
  
Tim shook his head. “As long as you don’t plan to pull an Alicia Silverstone on me we’ll be fine.”   
  
“Ugh, no.” Jason said. “I’m sure you’re capable of chewing your own food. Plus I wouldn’t want to rob you of the kokumi.”    
  
“The what?” Tim asked.   
  
“Kokumi. It’s the idea of ‘mouth feel’ when it comes to flavor. Think how 2% milk and whole milk taste different even though the only thing that changed is the level of fat. Or how a tiny bit of cheese just makes all the other flavors in a dish come alive.. There’s actually some pretty fascinating science behind it involving calcium channels on the tongue.”

  
Tim smiled. “Oh? Tell me more.”   
  
“Really?” Jason asked. “I’m not being too geeky for you?’   
  
“Nope, not at all.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you don't know, Alicia Silverstone supported 'birding' the act of chewing up food and spitting it into your baby's mouth just like a mother bird would with her chicks. Sorry emetophiles, but that's just not my jam. Ew.


	6. The Way To A Man’s Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a short epilogue since we should all know where this was going.

That one weekend dinner, soon turned into two, into three...into Jason just showing up to feed Tim everyday and taking great joy in seeing him eating properly and putting on some muscle. 

Within a few months they were serious enough to meet each other’s families. The Waynes were utterly ecstatic at the idea, especially Jason’s older brother Dick. Said brother had already taken to treating him like he was already part of the family and it just warmed Tim’s heart.

  
Tim’s family had been a bit leery about it at first, but when it became clear that Tim was deadly serious about disowning himself if that was what was needed to be with Jason that had acquiesced. It took some time but they gradually began to see Jason for who he really was rather than the caricature high society had made him out to be. And when they announced their engagement after graduation his parents had insisted that they help pay for the wedding.   
  
Of course, it didn’t hurt that Jason had turned his humble little startup into a thriving franchise in the space of just two years and now had satellite locations in Metropolis and Star City. Jason was on the fast track to being a millionaire in his own right and Tim was firmly in place to take over Drake Industries whenever his parents retired.   
  
Life was good and it was hard to believe it had all started over a case of midnight munchies. A bit like the ones that had him currently standing in the aisle of the Stop and Shop at two in the morning, a sleepy Jason in tow as he tried to decide between Belgian Chocolate or French Vanilla Bean.   
  
“Just get both, babe.” Jason murmured, covering his yawn. “S’not like we can’t afford it.”   
  
“If I get both I’ll want to eat both.” Tim said. “And it’s all your fault. I used to be able to run on coffee and spite. Then you went and wooed me with your culinary ways.”   
  
Jason chuckled and pulled Tim in for a quick snuggle, other people’s opinions on PDAs be damned. “Sorry, not sorry. If feeding you is what it took to tempt you to my side I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”   
  
“Oh, I don’t know. Your thighs might have been enough to tempt me as well.” Tim said. “They are quite fun to ride.”   
  
Jason suddenly felt a lot more awake. “Are they now? Well why don’t you go ahead and grab all the ice cream? I’ll make sure you ride them long enough to burn off ALL those excess calories.”   
  
“Oooh, I like the way you negotiate.” Tim said as he dropped both cartons into his basket. “Let’s go. We should enjoy our last nights together before you become Mr. Jason Todd-Drake.”   
  
“I still can’t believe you won the toss to go with that name instead of Drake-Wayne. We both know you’re the bride in this situation.”   
  
“Damn, straight I am.” Tim said. “Now get me home and carry me over the threshold. I want a full night of ice cream and sex before the wedding party decends.”   
  
“Whatever you want, baby bird.” Jason said as he took Tim’s hand in his own and gave him a smile so full of love and warmth that Tim thought his heart might burst. “Love you.”   
  
“I love you too, Jason. I love you too.”   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Personally I think the saying should be "The way to the heart is through taste." since it's essentially a meeting of tastes in everything from food, to music, to media that helps people form bonds. But that's just me.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed! Thanks for reading.


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